A new and exciting children’s play area in Sandbanks is proving popular with young beach visitors.

The new £110,000 play area includes sand, musical and role-play activities as well as equipment for springing, swinging, sliding, spinning and balancing.

The play equipment is linked by a boardwalk that snakes through the playground. The boardwalk is made from a hardwearing, recycled material and has the look of wood but will not warp, rot or become slippery when wet.

An attractive arrangement of boulders, planting, seating and wooden sleepers create an open, welcoming space.

The play area, which includes a six-metre-high activity net, forms part of a £400,000 project to improve facilities at Sandbanks. Borough of Poole’s Leisure Services unit has been developing the project since 2005. It has involved extensive landscaping and the creation of a tree-lined pedestrian ‘plaza’ leading visitors to the award-winning Blue Flag beach.

Cllr Peter Adams, Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Leisure and Culture, Borough of Poole, said: “We are delighted with the work carried out at Sandbanks, which has really improved the approach to one of our most popular and award-winning beaches. Now when visitors arrive at the beach they are greeted by a number of striking features which further enhance the already special character of Sandbanks.”  The Mayor of Poole, Cllr Charles Meachin, officially opened the play area on Monday 27 July.

Poole-based play and sport equipment supplier, Russell Leisure Limited, designed and installed the play area. The council’s own grounds maintenance team carried out the landscaping designed by landscape architect Helen Middleton-Stewart. Local company J Corcoran Ltd constructed a new footpath leading from the car park entrance on Banks Road and links to the play area’s boardwalk.